PRESS RELEASE FINAL – 06 JANUARY, 2010
iYogi gets $15 million to expand PC help
iYogi today announced that it has secured $15 million in venture capital funding from Draper Fisher Jurvetson, an auspicious development for the start-up.
iYogi today announced that it has secured $15 million in venture capital funding from Draper Fisher Jurvetson, an auspicious development for the start-up -- and potentially for Windows PC users who are increasingly frustrated by growing tech complexity.
iYogi is the fast-growing online consumer PC support service that's sort of like The Geek Squad, except you don't have to stand in line at a Best Buy superstore to get service.
For a $169 annual subscription you get what iYogi co-founder and CEO Uday Challu calls "all-you-can-eat, call-me-anytime" tech guidance. Challu says the $15 million will be used to expand from the company's current 1,700 employees to 3,000 in the next 12 months. Last year at this time, iYogi had 415 employees. Most of iYogi's workforce is based in big cities in India.
iYogi's techies assist subscribers who call in via a toll-free number. Challu says they are trained to guide you through solving most any problem having to do with setting up and fine-tuning your Windows PC's setup, performance and home network. They can also guide you through fixing glitches and using the more obscure features of Microsoft Office, any of the top Web browsers and any of the major security suites.
Challu says with the increasing complexity of tech gadgetry tied into Windows PCs, there is a "tremendous market opportunity for remote technical services." iYogi's business model is built around techies answering calls promptly and knowing their stuff. "We've been able to consistently resolve consumer concerns," he says.
Securing $15 million from Draper Fisher Jurvetson is a strong endorsement. DFJ has backed numerous promising start-ups that were later flipped for a big payday. DFJ's list of big winners includes: Hotmail, sold to Microsoft; Skype, sold to eBay; Overture, sold to Yahoo; TicketsNow, sold to Ticketmaster; and FeedBurner, sold to Google.
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